Workforce Education
Training Today for Tomorrow's Jobs!
Mission Statement
- Provide Washington’s 34 community
and technical colleges with the tools that they need to give access
to all of Washington’s residents to attain family wage jobs and adapt to future
career requirements in Washington’s changing economy.
- Build partnerships with Washington business and labor in order to build a world-class education and training system that makes every region of our state competitive in the world economy.
- Create a system of lifelong learning that allows students to seamlessly connect
learning in high school, in basic skills and ESL programs and learning on the job
to professional and technical programs in colleges and learning upgrades over their
lifetime.
Partnerships
The department helps build regional and statewide partnerships between colleges and companies, labor organizations, and industry associations.
The department works closely with the Association of Washington Business to link colleges with businesses throughout the state.
Funding and Technical Assistance
The department provides program funding and technical assistance to colleges in the following program areas:
Program Approval
The department oversees the professional-technical program approval process for the creation of new programs at colleges.
Integrated Programs for Low-Income Students
Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training (I-BEST) pairs ESL/ABE instructors with professional-technical instructors to provide students with literacy education and workforce skills at the same time.
Economic Development
The focus of the department for the past several years has been on the role of workforce education in economic development. The department works to provide resources and incentives to colleges to work with key strategic industries to build strong regional economies.
Additional Resources
- Career Bridge Website - find the education/training you need for the job you want.
- WA Skill Standards - designed to provide information about Washington's Skill Standards projects, link industry partners with schools and colleges, inform individuals about Skill Standards, and link Washington with national efforts.
- Workforce Education Council (WEC) - locate council information (meeting dates, contact information, meeting materials).
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Page Manager: dknackstedt@sbctc.edu
Page Reviewed/Updated: February 21, 2013, 1:41 PM